The Quote Me Collection
by Hisa-Ai
Summary: A collection of one-shots based off different quotes. Chap. 2: Kagome's 16th birthday rolls around so she's back home with her family and friends... And InuYasha. But he's faced with a small problem: What to get her? So, what does the hanyou get the miko?
1. Hana's Heart

I got the initial thought for this a few months ago and after day one I completely forgot about it and got wrapped up in some other projects, but I was taking a breather about a month or so ago and came across this page in one of my notebooks that had "The Quote Me Collection" written real big taking up the entire page and I decided to go back to it and work on it a little.

Basically, I pick a quote and I write a little something based off it. Whether or not the quote appears as dialogue in the story depends on what the quote is. Anyway, I don't have a specific time frame picked out, just whatever fits. Like for this one, this first one, it's set after the manga, about eighteen years after Kagome comes back, I think it is... All of them will include InuYasha and Kagome, or at least mention them in passing, but some of them, the ones set in InuYasha and Kagome's "future" or whatever you wanna call it, will also include their children.

This isn't going to be a main project for me and, really, each chapter is just going to be a one-shot, unless I specify otherwise. It's just something I'll work on every now and then when I need a break from one of my other projects or when I have a hard time sleeping - I've had a _really _tough time falling asleep lately. My days start at 5:30 AM Monday through Saturday and 4:30 AM on Sundays, but lately I haven't been able to fall asleep right away like I could before. Now, I'm not passing out until damn near midnight, no matter how tired I am - or when I'm bored or something. It's just a side-project, basically. But whenever I do go to post something for it, it _will _receive as much attention as anything else I post does - just because it's a side project doesn't mean I'm going to be sloppy about how I do things with it.

Anyway, "chapter one" is based off a quote from Markus Zusak's _The Book Thief_, and the whole quote is "If only she could be so oblivious again, to feel such love without knowing it, mistaking it for laughter and bread with only the scent of jam spread on top of it. It was the best time of her life," but I only use the first part of it in the story, up until the word "laughter."

This one mainly focuses on their first-born, a girl named Hana(pronounced like "Kanna" only with an "h" sound at the beginning instead of a "K")and the first time she gets her heart broken. Who would _dare_ break poor little Hana's heart-especially _knowing_ her father? You'll just have to read and see. I mention briefly some of their other kids, but they have little to do with this story, so I don't tell you much other than the fact that they have them.

I know that back then, at sixteen, most guys and girls were probably married or at least off on their own, but Kagome grew up modern time, so she doesn't believe in marrying off her kids just 'cause they reach a certain age. She's gonna let _them_ choose when they move out and who they marry and stuff. And InuYasha, being the whipped little puppy dog that he is, will go along with whatever Kagome wants...

I rant a little about Time at the beginning, and you're probably going to think I'm nuts 'cause what does Time have to do with Hana or Kagome or InuYasha? Actually, Time had a lot to do with Kagome and InuYasha and, by that logic, Hana and all their other kids as well, but that's not my point. Anyway, I think it all makes sense at the end...

**7/23/11: Quote this chapter is based off: **"If only she could be so oblivious again, to feel such love without knowing it, mistaking it for laughter and bread with only the scent of jam spread on top of it. It was the best time of her life." _The Book Thief_, Markus Zusak

**Disclaimer**: I don't own InuYasha or the quote. I'm just a girl trying to find some way to keep herself busy so she doesn't get in major trouble.

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><p>Time is a fickle thing. It controls all and it decides all. It decides when babies are born and when loved ones die. It decides when the sun comes and goes and it decides when the stars shine at night. It decides when the flowers bloom and when the leaves die. It decides when little boys become young gentlemen and when young gentlemen become men. It decides when little girls become young ladies and when young ladies become women. It decides when people fall in love. It decides when your hair turns grey. It decides when you move out and on with your life. It decides when you succeed and when you fail. It decides when you win and when you lose. It decides when you let go and when you hold on...<p>

Yes, Time controls everything. So what controls Time? Nothing and no one, for Time is a wild beast that cannot be tamed for too long without turning on its handler and possibly taking their life. And even if it doesn't, whoever tries it will eventually suffer the consequences anyway…

It's taken for granted. People think they are guaranteed tomorrow. If they don't have the nerve today, surely they'll have the chance to do it tomorrow or the next day or maybe next week or next month or even next year... They'll have the time to do it later. But they won't, because Time truly doesn't give a crap. It could care less about you and what you want; it only minds its own wishes and commitments. Time is selfish and you're using it. Well, guess what. Time can be a total brat that doesn't like to share, so if you're still using it and suddenly find yourself without it, don't be too surprised, don't be outraged, don't think Time owes you anything, because it doesn't and antagonizing it when it's in one of its moods isn't wise.

Kagome and InuYasha were two individuals who were _so sure_ they had Time under their control; they thought they could beat it. They thought that for the rest of their lives they would be able to screw with it and jump around at will, staying at this time period for x amount of days, then back to this time period for y amount of days... Time would have none of that.

For a while, it sat back and just watched, biding its-excuse the pun-time and waiting for the perfect opportunity. Any time they used the Well would have been good, but it knew better, it knew that to really teach them their lessons it would have to bide its time and wait for the perfect opportunity. It knew it would get the perfect chance soon enough.

And sure enough, the Well, the very thing that helped them defy Time, disappeared and then reappeared, trapping Kagome on one side and InuYasha on the other, both trapped and suffering. Good, they deserved it as far as Time was concerned and it wasn't about to help them out of their little mess.

So Time let them stew for three years while it watched and contemplated, trying to decide what it should do with the two because _this_, mere separation, was nothing. It was an angry parent sending their child to their room without supper while they decided on a more suiting punishment.

In those three years, Time sent a lot their way. They were always so sad and lonely, always missing the other, and Time almost considered leaving them like that for the rest of their lives, but when it took into account everything - all the tears, the sleepless nights, the empty aching they each felt inside... Just... _everything _- they'd been through, it showed a rare moment of mercy and allowed Kagome a choice: stay in her own period forever _without_ InuYasha, or go back one final time and live out her life in the Feudal Era _with_ InuYasha. She took the opportunity and decided to go back to the Feudal Era forever. She and InuYasha were reunited and it seemed that Time was on their side once again. But brats cannot change their ways forever; eventually it would turn on them again, but no one cared, not then.

They got married, they had kids, they built a life together, a happy life, a carefree life-compared to the life they led previously, anyway-a life they never wanted to end.

Over the years, things truly did change just as Kagome had predicted. Kaede died and Kagome was left as village priestess - not that she minded. No, she found it fun, albeit exhausting. And if, at the end of the day, she was too tired to cook dinner, that was no big deal; they'd simply sent the kids over to Sango's and Miroku's or Rin and Kohaku's or somewhere else in the village where they were welcomed - Rin and Kohaku wound up getting married and settling down near the village. And Miroku and Sango had twenty-two kids to date, some still at home, some off on their own, one dead. Their youngest was three-week-old Nozomi - when news of Sango's latest pregnancy had first reached InuYasha, he snorted out, "Again? Christ, why don't you just cut the thing off already, Sango?" Sango then glared thoughtfully at Miroku, making him nervous; she almost seemed to be seriously considering it...! - and the oldest still living at home was sixteen-year-old Haru.

Kagome and InuYasha had seven kids. Six year old Souta - named for Kagome's kid brother, whom was certainly all grown up by now - the nine year old triplets Kita, Kohana, and Mika - they'd once asked InuYasha when he had them off alone on a walk to kill off some of their extra energy why _those_ were their names. InuYasha had scratched the back of his neck before grinning slightly and sheepishly replying, "Well, you guys were conceived up north when I gave your mother a little flower on the night of the new moon.*" To which they made a face of disgust and rang out in unison, "_Dad-dy_! **_Gross_**!" "Well you asked!" - twelve year old Kiyoshi, ten year old Yasuo, and their oldest, sixteen year old Hana.

One particular night, Kiyoshi, Yasuo, the triplets, and Souta were all over at Rin and Kohaku's for dinner - Sesshoumaru was visiting and, despite how cold he was, the children all rather liked him, especially the triplets - but Hana had decided to go over to Sango and Miroku's for dinner. No one minded - in fact, InuYasha and Kagome were glad to have some time alone - but it _did_ pique everyone's interest; Hana didn't usually pass up the opportunity to go over to Rin and Kohaku's place, especially when Sesshoumaru was around. It seemed to everyone that she had been spending more and more time at Sango and Miroku's as of late. Some speculated that maybe little Hana had a crush on Uncle Miroku, but InuYasha and Kagome knew better. _They_ certainly weren't ones to tell their kids who they could and couldn't love, but InuYasha had told each and every one of his kids that if he ever caught them staring at Miroku with googly eyes, he'd send them to live with the wolf tribe - namely, Kouga, Ayame, and their whelps. None of them wanted _that _- especially not _Hana _- so he knew it couldn't be that particularly.

Still, he knew something was up with her. She was his oldest daughter, his oldest child, his _first_ child with _Kagome_, and he could tell when something was up with her and something was _definitely_ up. It wasn't that she was depressed or anything, she was just more bubbly and cheerful than usual, if that was even possible. Kagome always had a bit of a knowing look about her when InuYasha brought it up and when he'd ask her what was going on - that look told him she _knew _- she'd just kiss him so he'd forget what he was asking about in the first place. He hated that she could do that to him, but what was he supposed to do? Stop kissing her? No, not likely. Never gonna happen. And anyway, it'd been eighteen years at this point, so he was used to it. Moreorless.

Anyway, on this particular night when all the kids were off, Kagome and InuYasha were sitting inside the house InuYasha had started to build twenty-one years previous. At the time, he still had hope that any day now Kagome would come climbing out of the Well, and when she did, he was going to be ready. He was going to _show_ her that he was ready to spend forever with her. He'd spent all three years they were separated building the house. It started out as a simple hut, but after every failed visit to the well, he added something new. A room, a door, a window, a wall... It didn't matter _what, _just as long as he kept himself busy in some way or another, just to distract himself from the pain and tears, even just momentarily.

By the time she actually _did_ come back, the house was... Well, it was _huge_ and completely furnished. When he showed it to her for the first time the day after she came back, she just about jumped him right then and there. That was when he proposed. A couple of months later, they were married and mated. And a couple of years later, along came little Hana. The look on InuYasha's face when Sango and Rin told him to "come and meet your daughter," was one no one had seen since he and Kagome had gotten married. Pure happiness.

But this is not the tale of the births of their children. They were there for that - well, Kagome was, anyway. InuYasha wasn't allowed to be in the room when she gave birth because Sango said he just got in the way - and they were always there. They raised their children, they taught them well, and they watched them slowly grow. But, what they never foresaw, was Time turning on them once again. Only this time, it planned on using their _kids_ against them. One day their kids were babies and the next day Little Hana was sixteen and in love. Time was going by so fast now...

"Tell me what's going on with Hana." InuYasha growled in Kagome's ear, his arm wrapped around her and holding her close. She knew. He knew she knew and this was the perfect time to find out, when the kids were out and there were no distractions or little eavse-droppers to keep Kagome from telling him... Or, at least, that's what he had been counting on. But instead Kagome just giggled like she always had so many years ago and suddenly InuYasha was thrown back in time to when they were just teenagers. She was still so much the same as she had been when they first met. So much the same, but still so different... Then, just as suddenly, he was back in the present and Kagome was on his lap, leaning forward to try to kiss him. He however, had a different plan. He pulled back slightly and clucked at the look of disappointment on her face. He put his hands on her legs and smiled crookedly.

"C'mon, Kagome. You know what's going on with her, so just tell me."

Kagome sighed and rested her head on his shoulder, almost like she really didn't want to say, or like she _couldn't_ say. InuYasha rested his head against hers and stroked her hair. She sighed again and then:

"Hana's in-"

The front door was thrown open then and the girl in question ran past them quickly, a blur of silver being the only thing visible. Salt his InuYasha's nose and he stared after her with wide eyes. A second later, her bedroom door slammed shut, the air humming with tension and unanswered questions.

A moment later, InuYasha found himself whispering to Kagome, for he wasn't sure if she could tell, "Hana's crying." They stood then and quietly made their way to outside her bedroom, though she had to know they were there; she _had _inherited InuYasha's senses, after all.

"Hana?" Kagome rapped on the door timidly. InuYasha wrapped his arm around Kagome's waist, he felt his blood boiling beneath his skin and knew that the only thing keeping him from going to Sango and Miroku's in that instant, the only thing letting him hold onto his sanity, was Kagome's fragile frame in his grip, and he'd be damned if he was going to let that go.

"Hana? Can we come in?" Kagome tried again. When they received no answer, InuYasha shrugged and pushed the door open. They walked in and gently closed the door behind themselves.

Thrown across her bed shaking with sobs was Hana, their sixteen-year-old daughter. She looked exactly like InuYasha did, complete with the silver dog-ears, but the only trait that anyone ever called _his_ was her temper. She was usually so peaceful and giggly and bubbly and it took a lot to get her mad, but when she got mad, she _got mad _and whoever had pissed her off would probably wind up dead in a ditch somewhere. The stubbornness she sometimes displayed was always attributed to Kagome, since it did not go to the degree that _was_ InuYasha's stubbornness.

"Hana," Kagome pulled away from InuYasha's soft grip and sat down on the bed while InuYasha, his temper now flaring and most of his sanity now lost, paced the room. Damn, damn, DAMN! What did that **_stupid _**monk and his **_stupid _**kids do to her? Ugh, okay, _maybe_ the lech wouldn't have done anything to make her cry like _this _- he **knew** better - and if Sango or Miroku knew one of their kids had done this, they would have dragged them here by their ear to make them apologize to her - to _teach _them to _know better _- so then what happened? It was possible that Hana had gone off alone with one of their kids and Sango and Miroku just didn't know yet. _They sure as hell will when I'm done with them…!_

"Hana, sweetheart, what's wrong?" Kagome cooed, shooting InuYasha a look that told him if he didn't stand still she was going to make him. He stopped pacing and stood with his arms crossed inside his haori sleeves while Kagome coaxed Hana into a sitting position. And then, glancing at her mother and father like that, so in tune with each other and so in love even after seven kids and an uncountable amount of fights and all the crap they'd had to go through just to _be together_, she burst into a fresh batch of tears and spilled the whole story without much more coaxing, another way that she differed entirely from InuYasha.

First and foremost, she was in love - InuYasha's first reaction was shock; how could his baby girl be in _love_? - then Kagome shot him another look and told him to sit down and let Hana speak. After he pulled himself from the ground - thanking the Kamis Hana's room was on the first floor and that he wouldn't have to repair a hole in a _ceiling_/floor, he sat down next to Kagome and nodded for her to continue - and she was in love with Haru, Miroku and Sango's sixteen-year-old son.

Then she weaved a story of how she had come to this conclusion and how Haru had led her on in recent months, flirting with her madly and always doing and saying things that made her believe he felt the same way, too. Then, on that very night, after dinner was eaten and the younger kids were off playing and training, the two had gone off into the forest alone - InuYasha flinched visibly when Hana said this, but he didn't dare interrupt -; Once they were well into the forest, she said, they sat nervously on the edge of the old Well and just sat in silence for a minute. Then, Hana, unable to stand it anymore, blurted out, "I love you."

Haru breathed out dramatically, looked into her off amber eyes, and said, calm and evenly, "I know, but... I can't be involved with you."

"W-why not?" She trembled, her heart mimicking her voice.

"Because, I can't have anything to do with anyone with demon in their blood. And your dad's half-demon, so that makes you a quarter demon and that's... wrong, Hana. How can a human love a demon? I'm..." He narrowed his eyes and said with a sudden burst of anger, "I could never love a beast like you." Hana ran off then, but not before she pushed Haru back and into the Well. He cried out in pain when he hit the ground hard with a thud, but Hana was halfway home by then.

"Oh, Hana..." Kagome exclaimed, hugging her daughter tight. InuYasha clenched his fists and punched the wall as Kagome began to cry as well. He would have to fix that later, but, right now, he just didn't care. Right now, he was pissed indefinitely. How _dare_ that punk! How _dare_ Miroku raise a kid like that?1 Where did he get off-? What gave him the right-? He couldn't take this sitting down; he stood up and began pacing the room. No, Haru would not get away with this. He was going to have to die; that was all these was to it.

"InuYasha, sit!" Kagome said, making him hit the ground yet again.

He jumped up, angrier and more agitated than before and screamed, "Goddamnit, wench! What'd 'ya do that for? I didn't do nothing yet!"

"**_Yet_**. I know you, InuYasha, you were thinking about going and killing Haru. Well, you can't. He's still Sango and Miroku's son and they're still our friends." She scolded him, making his ears flatten on his head. It took a bit of coaxing, threatening, and er, _promising _on Kagome's part, but finally he agreed not to go after Haru. Instead, he stayed there with his wife and daughter until their other kids came home and then he got them all together in the living room and entertained them for the night while Kagome stayed with Hana. For the first time since being reunited, InuYasha fell asleep without Kagome in his arms and it was not a deep sleep, not a peaceful sleep, but he was willing to sacrifice his sleep for that of his daughter's and her well-being. Deep down, he knew it was going to take a lot more than spending the night with her mother to make Hana feel any better, but he figured they could deal with that when the time came.

Days passed and all Hana did was sleep and cry, sleep and cry. None of the other kids knew what was wrong with her, and all InuYasha would say was, "Hana's not feeling well." And leave it at that for them to wonder about.

Eventually, Hana came out of her room again and began joining the family for meals. She would train with InuYasha, go over to Rin and Kohaku's for dinner, she would go into the village with Kagome, but she would not go over to Sango and Miroku's. Obviously, she wasn't able to face Haru herself yet, so InuYasha took a walk over to Sango and Miroku's himself one day when Kagome and Hana were in the village and the other kids were off training. When he arrived, Haru was sitting alone on a length of tree that had fallen near Sango and Miroku's place one day a year or so back that they had since used to sit on, his face full of scratches and his ankle wrapped up. InuYasha couldn't help but smirk at the sight, he was lucky Hana wasn't more like him, otherwise he would probably be dead.

Haru saw InuYasha coming and froze, his eyes were hard and angry but his body language portrayed fear. Good. He had every reason to be afraid; InuYasha wasn't like Kagome or Hana and Kagome wasn't there to rein him in, so fear was expected of him, fear would keep him alive. For the moment, anyway.

"Oh, Haru..." InuYasha smirked yet again, showing his fangs. He sat down next to Haru and flexed his claws. "So, how's it goin'?" He asked. It always screwed with people when he used that tone and Haru was no exception, he was taken back slightly and confused to say the least. After all, he had broken his daughter's heart, so why was he acting so civily towards him? He'd find out soon enough. "Good? You doin' good? Oh, could you hold on just a second? Sango! Miroku! Could you two come out here for a minute?"

"What are you doing?" Haru hissed. InuYasha stretched his arms above his head noiselessly. It had been almost a week since Hana came home crying and he hadn't seen Sango or Miroku since. He'd figured Haru hadn't said a word of what happened to them and that was just fine; he was going to tell them for him. It was the _least_ he could do...

"Nothin' just gonna have a chat with a couple old friends, is that okay with you? Oh, wait, it doesn't matter what you think; you're still a child and I can kick your ass; I can _kill_ you." Miroku and Sango - carrying little Nozomi in her arms - came out then, so any other threats fell from his tongue before he spoke them, he didn't want to ruin the surprise, after all. Unlike with him and Kagome, the years had taken their toll on these two. No longer the young vibrant people InuYasha had once traveled with, they were both older now and looked it, wrinkles and gray hair completing their slightly aged look. Still, they both had the same fire inside them that they always had that kept them going through everything that had happened. The only major difference was parenthood, and after watching InuYasha and Shippou for all that time, not even that surprised them much.

"InuYasha, what a surprise! You didn't do this to Haru, did you?" Sango asked, sitting on the other side of Haru. Miroku smiled and nodded a slight greeting and sat down across from the four. InuYasha scratched behind his ear, just as he thought; Haru hadn't said a damn thing to them. This could be _fun_.

Haru, probably sensing the malice coming off the hanyou, tried wobbling to his feet, but before he could make much progress, InuYasha barked, "Si' down, Haru," stopping him and making him plop back down between his mother and, as all the kids had called him when they were younger, "Uncle Doggy." If he unsheathed the Tetsusaiga right then and there and killed Haru on the spot, how much time would he have to resheath it and run to Kagome and Hana in the village? _Not enough_, he decided, letting out a growl of frustration. He turned to Sango instead.

"Nope, I didn't do a thing to Haru,"

"I told you," Miroku began, "InuYasha has no reason-"

"Oh, I have a reason," InuYasha interjected, "I just didn't do _this_. If I had _my_ way, your bastard son would be dead by now, but Kagome said not to; Hana's upset enough as it is." They seemed to shrug off the "bastard" remark - they were pretty much used to his mouth by this point. - but what they weren't used to was InuYasha saying Hana was upset, and with good reason too; Hana was usually so bubbly...

Both Miroku and Sango tried addressing everything in that sentence at once - "What reason could you possible have?" "Why do you wanna kill Haru _this_ time" "What's Hana upset about?" "Why's Hana upset?" "What's wrong with Hana?" "What does this have to do with Haru?" - but InuYasha silenced them with a growl and explained slowly what Hana had told him and Kagome a week previous. Haru sat there, listening to the story being told from the point of view of the father of the girl he had completely destroyed, but he felt nothing then, nothing but fear, so it seemed to InuYasha. Fucking bastard. If Sango and Miroku weren't there, you could bet your ass that that boy would be long dead and buried...

"Haru!" Sango gasped, smacking him upside the head and making Nozomi giggle. "Why would you say such a thing to her? You've known Hana your whole life! What could have possibly possessed you-?" Sango was furious. InuYasha smirked as he saw the fire that had kept her going the whole time they were hunting down Naraku and the Shikon no Tama shards light up again and increase tenfold. Hmm, maybe Sango's wrath would make up for him not getting to kill him... Death would be a much better, a less severe punishment compared to what Sango would do to him... _Good_, he deserved it.

InuYasha did note, however, that Miroku was deathly silent. Curious, he turned toward him and found that his fists were clenched tightly and his whole body was shaking with anger. Satisfied, he stood and turned to Sango.

"I just thought I should mention that before I told you this," his eyes hardened as he bared his fangs. "If I ever see that bastard son of yours anywhere _near_ Hana ever again, I swear to God I will kill him on the spot." Then he turned and made his way to the village to see how Kagome and Hana were doing, knowing that Sango and Miroku understood him and would undoubtedly handle Haru in a suiting manner.

~ ! # $ % ^ & * ( ) ~ ! # $ % ^ & * ( ) ~ ! # $ % ^ & * ( ) ~ ! # $ % ^ & * ( )~

"How's she doing?" InuYasha whispered, wrapping his arms around Kagome's waist. They were standing inside the hut they had spent so much time in as teenagers, eating or collecting information or recovering from injuries; They were inside Kaede's hut. Kagome was smashing and mixing together numerous herbs for some mixture or another. Hana was just outside the door, picking more herbs for her. Everything about her at the moment - from the way her ears twitched to the way her shoulders slumped as she slowly moved her arms to pick the herbs and then back to put them in a basket Kagome had given her - seemed so sad and deflated. It broke InuYasha's heart seeing her like this, but what could he do? Short of turning back Time, that is?

"It's going to be a while before she's back to her old self, InuYasha. A broken heart takes time to heal. Especially if it's the first time it's happened, and I'm sure this is the first time something like this has happened to her."

InuYasha bit his lip and, nodding his head in understanding, looked out the unobscured doorway to watch their daughter for several silent minutes before a gnawing feeling inside made him ask, "Did your heart ever get broken?"

Kagome nodded slowly and sat the mortar and pestle down before she turned around in his grip to face him, her brown eyes so intense he had his answer long before she opened her mouth.

"All the time when we were teenagers. You haven't forgotten-? Every time Kikyou came up or around, my heart got broken all over again. I would go through the Well to recuperate for a few days, but I never made much progress before it got broken all over again. Then when we were separated for three years... My heart was broken the whole time - Wasn't yours?"

"Of course," he placed his hands on either side of her face gently. "The whole time, I never stopped thinking about you - I told you about the house, didn't I? Anyway, that doesn't matter - Have I, in my infinite stupidity, broken your heart in recent years?"

Kagome shook her head as InuYasha, glad to hear he could do _something _right, kissed her slowly, his lips moving against hers and making his own heart race as she kissed him back just as slowly and lovingly. She turned back around after they broke apart and continued with the mixture, the repetitive sound of the mortar and pestle lulling InuYasha into a trance, so he wasn't aware of how much time had passed before Kagome said,

"If only there were a few herbs out there that I could crush and mix together to cure her broken heart. If only I could ease her pain..." she finished with a sigh. InuYasha shook his head, there was no way for that wish to be granted, he realized. In his and Kagome's three years of separation, he had learned that there was no kind of magical cure for that kind of pain. But Kagome was no idiot; he knew she probably already knew that, so he chose not to put words to that thought. Instead, he voiced an even more impossible wish, but it was one he still yearned for. One that, were the Shikon no Tama still around, he would gladly trade his own soul for, if only it were granted in its entirety.

"If only she could be so oblivious again, to feel such love without knowing it, mistaking it for laughter." Kagome nodded, not the least bit surprised by his burst of maturity and deep thoughts. She had learned shortly after returning from her own time all those years ago that he had grown up, even just a little bit, while they were apart. Since they first had Hana sixteen years previous, Kagome had learned that his gained maturity mixed with his streak of immaturity made him a great father, but sometimes neither could help but wonder if the trade off had been worth it...

Yes, Time had turned on them once again. They always knew it wasn't really done with them; it had just been hiding in the shadows for some years, busying itself as it awaited the perfect opportunity to strike once again, and, clearly, it had. Hana's heart had been broken for the first time and they were forced to accept the fact that Hana wasn't their little baby anymore, she was sixteen now, and she was damn near grown. Soon, the rest of their children would grow up and face the same problems Hana had, the same problems Kagome and InuYasha had, but they wouldn't always be there. One day, Kagome and InuYasha would be dead, leaving nothing but their children as proof of their existence, but that would be enough for them. They had saved the world from a great evil in their younger days, and their children, well and alive, were proof enough of that accomplishment.

But, as they were both fairly stubborn, their deathes wouldn't take place for a long, long time; for the moment, all they had to do was be who they were and continue to take on a role that, while not as exciting as the ones they'd had as teenagers, was worth so much more to them now. InuYasha and Kagome merely had to be parents, a task they seemed to prefer in their later years, though if questioned about it, both would say they _did_ miss fighting demons on a daily basis, even just a little bit.

Eventually, Hana and Haru would both recover from their little episode. Hana would go off on her own, find a nice boy, fall in love, settle down, and have children and a life of her own, and Haru would follow in his father's footsteps as a traveling monk for a while before being killed by a demon... Life would go on. Time would always win as it made sure parents died and children grew up, but not always in that order. It would make sure, always, that children would always grow up before their parents were ready. A difficult lesson for all to swallow indeed, but a lesson Time would always teach.

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><p>* = Cheesey and possibly lame, I know, but when I thought of that line, I couldn't leave it out. Now, you're probably thinking "What the fuck is this chick <em>on<em>?" so I better explain myself. Kita means "north;" Kohana means "little flower;" and Mika means "New Moon." so that's where that came from. It doesn't make much sense, but it's not vital to the story-line, so it doesn't have to; I just thought it was worth a laugh, especially the "Dad-dy! Gross!" part. Plus, I think it's beyond cute to think of three little girls calling InuYasha "daddy" in unison, don't you?

So that was that; chapter one. I should have had this up eons ago; I don't know why it took me so long... You know, it might have something to do with this godforsaken heat wave the mid-west has been hit with... Plus, I've been grieving these last few days. Over what? you ask... Over Harry Potter.

*sigh* Sorry, I'm one of _those_ girls. I can't help it though, I grew up with HP and the fact that it's all coming to an end- first no more books, now no more movies - is sad. It basically signifies the end of my childhood. We had a good run, though, didn't we? If it weren't for JKR and HP, a lot of kids wouldn't have been turned on to reading, and that's an amazing accomplishment for her to boast about.

Everyone wants her to do another book, maybe about his kids or something, and I kind of want that, too, but in my heart, I know that would be a terrible terrible idea. If she writes another book, sure, she'll make more money because every hard-core HP fan would buy it, but it wouldn't be as good as the first seven are and we all know that. The Boy Who Lived finally got his happy family, his happily ever after, can't we just let him enjoy it? HP will always be part of my life; I've devoured the books as they came out in one night, I've seen the movies, watched the marathons, been on the websites, I've never dressed up like one of the HP characters, but I _have_ got the accent down pat, I cried while I was reading the last book - God, could you _believe_ how many characters JKR killed off? I was still getting over Sirius' death from book five when I read book seven and she killed off all those awesome characters - and I'm pretty sure I'll cry when I see the last HP movie... It's been a huge part of my life for so long now that I just can't imagine the world without news of HP, but soon enough, that's going to be the world we live in. When I have kids of my own some day in the distant future, I plan on reading them all the HP books. A chapter every night before they go to bed seems fair to me. Plus, maybe the Fairytales...

I haven't been to see the last HP movie yet, has anyone reading this seen it yet? Is it good? Obviously it's _good_, but what did you think of it? What about the epilogue? Did they get that right? I hope so...

Anyway, this is a lot more mature and enlightened than what I usually do - especially at the end there - but Kagome, InuYasha, Miroku, and Sango are adults with kids here, so I guess I just thought it should seem more grown-up as well. Let me know what you think.

Peace out,

~Hisa-Ai~


	2. Happy Birthday, Kagome

This one's kind of short, but I really like it. It's based off a Taylor Swift quote that goes something like this: "I've apparently been the victim of growing up, which apparently happens to all of us at one point or another. It's been going on for quite some time now, without me knowing it. I've found that growing up can mean a lot of things. For me, it doesn't mean I should become somebody completely new and stop loving the things I used to love. It means I've just added more things to my list." I don't know in what context she said this, but, according to the quotes section on Goodreads, she said it at some point or another, so that's who I'm crediting it to.

This one is just kind of based on the quote, so no one actually says it. Yes, I know, it's disappointing to hear that InuYasha will not be quoting Taylor Swift, isn't it? Ah, oh well; another time, perhaps.

I don't really have a lot more to say about it, I mean, it's barely a page long so... Eh, you don't need my commentary before you even read the thing...

**8/5/11: Quote this chapter is based off:** "I've apparently been the victim of growing up, which apparently happens to all of us at one point or another. It's been going on for quite some time now, without me knowing it. I've found that growing up can mean a lot of things. For me, it doesn't mean I should become somebody completely new and stop loving the things I used to love. It means I've just added more things to my list." ~Taylor Swift~

* * *

><p>"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Ka-go-me... Happy birthday to you!" I glanced around the room at the smiling faces of Ayumi, Yuka, Eri, Hojo, Souta, Mama, Gramps, and then the scowling face of InuYasha. Everyone else was crowded around the table near me and the cake, but he was leaning against the counter-top with his arms crossed inside his haori, moping about having to cover his ears up I smiled, a giggle threatening to bubble up at the scene that was played out before me. InuYasha was so out of place here! But he had still showed up...<p>

"Make a wish, Nee-Chan, before the candles melt!" Souta exclaimed, ever impatient to get a piece of cake. InuYasha's bandana moved slightly, telling me his ears were twitching beneath it. His eyes moved slightly and caught my own, his mouth opening to reveal his fangs in a small, sexy smile. My heart skipped a beat as I turned back to my cake after returning the smile. I closed my eyes tightly and thought with all my might:

_I wish that I never stop loving him._

Then I blew out the candles and snapped my eyes open as my friends and family all applauded.

Later, as I was opening my presents and reading cards that congratulated me on a happy sweet sixteen, InuYasha plopped down on my bed next to me, making me think about the wish I had made and what it really meant to love something. I had lived my whole life loving things but not _really _loving them; not knowing what love actually was. Now, as I turned another year older, I knew that I still loved most of those things, but at the same time, I loved a whole slew of new things as well. My past and my present mixed together in my heart, sharing all the love I had. Did I know anymore at sixteen than I had at fifteen or fourteen what love was? Any adult would probably tell you that I didn't, but - even if I _didn't - _I still liked to think that I did.

"Wench..." InuYasha started, slowly undoing the bandana and twitching his ears so they could loosen up and relax. As he rubbed his ears gently, I realized that I had wasted a perfectly good wish, because there was no way I could ever stop loving him. Not ever. He wasn't just _on_ the list of the things that I loved, he _was_ the list most of the time "I've been thinking long and hard about what I can get you for your birthday and... Well... Here." He turned his head toward me so I was staring at his fluffy ears. "You're always staring at them and I know you want to touch them, so here. Five minutes and you never speak of this to anyone, 'kay?"

I squealed with delight and began counting down the time, as I started rubbing his ears gently between my fingers. I would always love doing _this_, too.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **I just love the idea of InuYasha offering up his ears for five whole minutes as a birthday present to Kagome, don't you? That'd be a great present to get... God, you _know_ something's wrong when you're jealous of a character for a situation _you_ wrote them into. Ah, it can't be helped.

I wrote this one all the way back in June and decided to just post it since it was so short and wouldn't take me much time to type up and edit and things of the such. I've read through it about ten times by now, so I'm kind of sick of looking at it because of that; I've pretty much got the whole damn thing memorized by this point. Haha, that reminds me of Axel from Organization 13 from the Kingdom Hearts games. "Got it memorized?" In this case, Axel; yes, I most certainly do.

Peace out.

~Hisa-Ai~


End file.
